Popup hitch factory review, gooseneck extensions

Kent

12 years ago

PopUp hitches for your truck, made in Kansas

See the short-bed truck gooseneck extensions.

I visited PopUp’s head quarters in Chanute Kansas this spring. Kansas, like Iowa is known for making farm machinery. PopUp Industries is in the part of Kansas, where generations of welders understand quality metal working, like the Amish bring quality to RV manufacturing. It’s also the oil capital for Kansas with steel coming to town daily. What better place to make hitches for American trucks and trailers. I first heard of PopUp because of their SB1 shortbed coupler (picture below). With shortbed trucks, now the most popular configuration, you’d think trailer manufactures would adjust their goosenecks. Well someday, but I hear from folks every week emailing me that they just crunched the cab of their truck with the corner of their trailer. Now what do they do? Popup hitch factory review, gooseneck extensions.

It would be nice to have 90 degrees of movement between your truck and gooseneck trailer for gas stations, sale barns, fair grounds etc…. PopUp has the patent on the gooseneck tube extension that replaces your straight telescoping tube. Original SB1 gooseneck extension is 9 inches and the new SB116 has 16 inches of forward extension, good for the 5’6″ truck beds on 1/2 ton crew cabs.

Truck bed hitches: Only takes a three inch hole in the truck bed for the gooseneck ball. We installed the hitch in my truck without removing the spare tire. Not an easy task building a hitch around all the gadgets truck manufactures place on the truck frame, PopUp designs the hitch frame around the fuel tank, ABS and trailer brake control sensors, exhaust pipe and even air bags, using the existing factory frame holes.

PopUp had the original PopUp truck bed ball hitch. You pull the lever in the wheel well and the ball would “popup” through the bed floor. If you maintained it, (grease) it worked fine. But hay and dirt could plug up the dual cam system. Popup 2 (picture below) eliminates the cams that lift the ball, to one sliding wedge that lifts the gooseneck ball up and locks in place with a spring loaded detent ball and stainless steel screw. A simpler system of raising the ball without having to climb into the truck bed and turn the ball over. Both Flip-Over and PopUp 2 use existing frame holes to mount to your truck. Generally, the ball will be 3 inches in front of the trucks rear axle. The trailer weight is applied to the truck frame on top with angle iron and the center ball frame to the sides with heavy plate metal.

PopUp Cushion Couplers, take the jerk out of your ride. With suspensions different on truck and trailer, where they connect can be an impact. I noticed when you take off and stop, with PopUp’s Cushion Coupler, it’s smoother. Also a nine inch shortbed cushion coupler (picture below). Save the cabinets and mirrors in your horse trailer Living Quarters. I do long trips across the country, I appreciate anything that reduces my fatigue and my buds in the back dancing on all fours.

PopUp steel components are B-B blasted and powder coated. The individual components that make up PopUp products are produced using state-of-the-art CNC machining, CNC laser cutting and/or CNC forming equipment. Welded fabrication and final assembly are completed to exact specifications in precision molds.

Big precision machines, cut, stamp and powder coat hitch parts for decades of use.

Installing the NEW PopUp 2, which extends and retracts with a pull of the lever.


Everything you need comes in the box	Box box is assembled	Simple wedge pushes ball up through truck bed floor	Measuring from the rear of your truck bed, measure several times and drill hole once.	Hole saw drill.

Only a 3 inch hole compared to 4 inch holes in other hitches	Cutting the V-notches, to slide braces across truck frame	Sticking the angle iron through notch	Flat iron on the GM truck	Braces connect to each truck frame rail


Ball has threaded hole to help align box frame with bed hole	Chain makes it easier to lift off the floor up to truck bed floor	Lifting ball box through the bed hole and held in place with board across blocks	Aligning the ball box with angle and plate metal frame braces	Angle iron bolts to ball box

Plate metal bolts to ball box on the other side	Ball box and frame braces in place on top of trucks frame	Frame side plates now tie all the braces and truck frame together with existing frame holes	Side plates bolt to cross braces and truck frame	Brackets to attach around boxed frames


Brackets designed around fuel tanks, exhaust pipes and electronics on frame	Drilled from the bottom, safety chains U-bolt holes	Small holes for the safety chains finished on top	A usable truck bed, with the ball up only when you need it	Cap for retracted ball hole